Restored black beauty to soon be on display again after rows and vandalism
A black iron horse that was restored to its former glory after being hacked to pieces by thieves will finally be back where she belongs in 2023.
This year has been frustrating for the team of volunteers who painstakingly made “Rosie” a black beauty again after the artwork was dumped in undergrowth.
They hoped to have Rosie resplendent for railway passengers on Coseley Railway Station for the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee in June.
However, disagreements with the rail authorities meant Rosie was in danger of being out of sight of passengers which would have been a ‘night-mare’ for the volunteers who wanted to complete the 12 iron horses originally erected in 1987. Kat Partridge, from Bayer Street Allotments, said: “We have spent four years now trying to get Rosie back in her rightful place by the railway.
“We wanted Rosie on the bank of Coseley Railway Station but we were told no, and there has been a lot of other places we have looked at but now we have been told she can go where we first wanted her to go. The cost of mounting her has now tripled but we have been told the cost will be covered even though we offered to mount her ourselves, we have the skills and know-how to do it in our group.”
Just to erect Rosie in the right place will cost £15,000 whereas the original 12 sculptures, which weigh half a tonne each, cost British Rail £10,0000 in 1987.
She added: “2022 has been a frustrating year but it will be all worth it when Rosie takes her rightful place in Coseley Railway Station in 2023.”
Artist Kevin Atherton installed 12 iron horses between Wolverhampton and Birmingham making it “the longest sculpture in the world” which lauded the proud industrial past of the region.
With Rosie taking her place at the station she will ensure the artist’s vision is complete again.
They were designed to be viewed from a moving train as silhouettes, with six facing towards Wolverhampton and six heading towards Birmingham.
